Tel Aviv  - Israel was set to free 20 female Palestinian prisoners Friday in exchange for a sign-of-life video of an Israeli soldier held captive by Hamas for more than three years in the Gaza Strip.

The prisoners are slated to be taken to a West Bank checkpoint at the same time that Israel receives the one-minute video, reportedly shot recently, of Gilad Shalit.

The swap could mark the beginning of the final stage in efforts to free Shalit, who was snatched on June 25, 2006, during a cross-border raid launched from the Gaza Strip. He has been held virtually incommunicado since he was captured.

Hamas is demanding 1,000 prisoners in exchange for him, and negotiations to free him have been unsuccessful up until now. (dpa)